Year: 2020

Legal English: “legal” meanings of “award”

rebeccajowers Common words with uncommon legal meanings

Common Words with Uncommon Legal Meanings

Everyone with a minimal knowledge of English will recognize “award” as a synonym of “prize” (the Academy Awards; The Best Fifa Football Awards). But there are several legal meanings of “award” that might not be so obvious. In the context of court rulings, a judge may “award damages” to the successful party in a civil suit. But ¡ojo! In Spanish this is expressed from the perspective of the losing party who is condenado al pago de daños y perjuicios (literally, “ordered to pay damages”) to the successful party.

Likewise, a court may “award costs” to the successful party in litigation, which (once again) in Spanish is expressed from the perspective of the losing party who is condenado en costas (“ordered to pay costs”). In that regard, condena en costas is a “costs award” or “award of costs,” but is also often expressed in English as a “costs order” or “order for costs.”

In arbitration, an arbitrator’s decision is not a judgment, but rather an “award” (in Spanish, laudo arbitral). So, “award” in this context must always be translated as laudo.

And, as a final example, in English a contract is “awarded” to the winning bidder. Thus, adjudicar un contrato is “to award a contract” (never “adjudicate,” a false friend explained here).

Mistranslations: Avoid literal renderings of telemático

rebeccajowers Mistranslations?

Is this really a mistranslation_

In English, “telematics is a term that combines the words ‘telecommunications’ and ‘informatics’ to broadly describe the integrated use of communications and information technology to transmit, store and receive information from telecommunications devices to remote objects over a network.” And telématico/a and telemáticamente are often rendered literally in Spanish as “telematic” and “telematically.” But as used currently in Spain, the terms simply refer some type of transaction conducted “online.”

In that regard, official documents such as tax returns, annual accounts and notarial instruments may often be filed online with the competent authorities, and this procedure is referred to as presentar telématicamente (to “file online”) or presentación telemática (“online filing”). In this context pago telématico is simply an “online payment.” Other common examples include presentación telemática de las cuentas anuales en el Registro Mercantil (“online filing of annual accounts at the Companies Registry”); presentar telemáticamente la declaración de la renta (“to file a tax return online”) or presentar la solicitud telemáticamente (“to submit the application online”).

Capsule Vocabularies: Branches of Law in Spanish and English (2)–Private Law

rebeccajowers Capsule vocabularies

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Yesterday we looked at the major branches of Spanish public law (Derecho público) in Spanish and English. To complete this terminology review, below are the main areas of law included in the private law category (Derecho privado), with possible English renderings:

Derecho civil–civil law

Derecho de la persona–law of persons

Derecho de obligaciones–law of obligations

Derecho de los contratos–contract law

Derecho de daños–law of torts; tort law

Derecho de familia–family law; domestic relations

Derecho matrimonial–matrimonial law

Derecho patrimonial–property law

Derecho inmobiliario–land law; law of real property; real estate law

Derecho registral–law of public registers

Derecho hipotecario; Derecho inmobiliario registral–law of land registration

Derecho notarial–notarial law; law of public notaries

Derecho de sucesiones–law of succession; inheritance law

Derecho mercantil–business law

Derecho de la propiedad intelectual; derechos de autor–copyright law; copyright

Derecho de la propiedad industrial (patentes, marcas, etc.)–industrial property law (patents, trademarks, etc.)

Derecho de marcas; Derecho marcario–trademark law

Derecho de patentes–patent law

Derecho societario; Derecho de sociedades–law of business organizations; corporate law; company law

Derecho bancario–banking law

Derecho del mercado de valores; Derecho bursátil–securities markets law

Derecho cambiario–law of negotiable instruments

Derecho de la competencia–competition law (EU); antitrust law (US)

Derecho de la competencia desleal–unfair competition law

Derecho de la publicidad–advertising law

Derecho contable–accounting law

Derecho concursal–insolvency law

Derechos de los seguros privados–insurance law

Derecho de la navegación–shipping law; maritime and aviation law

Derecho marítimo–maritime law; admiralty law

Derecho aeronáutico; Derecho aéreo–aviation law

Source: Léxico temático de terminología jurídica español-inglés

 

 

Capsule Vocabularies: Branches of Law in Spanish and English (1)–Public Law

rebeccajowers Capsule vocabularies

wood-cube-abc-cube-letters-488981-e1536850974730

Spanish law is generally divided into two major branches (ramas de Derecho): Derecho público (public law) and Derecho privado (private law). Below are the principal disciplines included in Derecho público with possible English translations:

Derecho constitucional–constitutional law

Derecho eclesiástico del Estado–law of church-state relations

Derechos fundamentales–fundamental rights

Derecho económico; Derecho de la economía–economic law

Derecho administrativo–administrative law

Derecho parlamentario–parliamentary law

Derecho electoral–election law; electoral law

Derecho urbanístico–zoning law; urban planning

Derecho ambiental/medioambiental–environmental law

Derecho de los consumidores–consumer protection law

Derecho de aguas–water law

Derecho minero–mining law

Derecho de extranjería–immigration law

Derecho procesal–procedural law

Derecho procesal civil–civil procedure

Derecho procesal penal–criminal procedure

Derecho procesal laboral; Derecho procesal del trabajo–labor procedure

Derecho procesal contencioso administrativo–administrative procedure

Derecho penal–criminal law; penal law

Derecho penal del menor–juvenile justice

Derecho penitenciario–corrections law; prison law

Derecho del trabajo; Derecho laboral–labor law

Derecho individual del trabajo–employment law

Derecho de la Seguridad Social–social security law

Derecho financiero–finance law

Hacienda pública–public finance

Derecho presupuestario–budgetary law

Derecho tributario–tax law

(Tomorrow: Branches of Law in Spanish and English (2)–Private Law)

Source: Léxico temático de terminología jurídica español-inglés

Español jurídico: What is a magistrado-juez?

rebeccajowers Español jurídico

Legal Spanish for Translators

In a previous post we looked at the term magistrado and saw why it cannot be translated as “magistrate.” But what about magistrado-juez? (A “judge-judge”?) For those unfamiliar with the Spanish judiciary, the term is certainly confusing. Having recently discussed this in class with my students, I thought it might be worth taking a look at it here in the blog.

The distinction between the two categories of Spanish judge (juez and magistrado) is quite clear: jueces sit on single-judge (usually) trial courts (juzgados; órganos unipersonales), while magistrados sit in panels on multi-judge (often) appellate courts (tribunales; órganos colegiados). Both can be rendered as “judge,” and the omnipresent expression jueces y magistrados is merely a reference to “judges” collectively or to the Spanish judiciary as a whole.

A magistrado-juez is a judge who has obtained the category of magistrado, but who sits on a single-judge court. A typical example are the magistrados-juez who sit on juzgados de instrucción, investigating and preparing the subsequent trials of major felonies (delitos graves).

Thus, if a definition is required, a magistrado-juez is a (senior) judge (magistrado) who sits on a single-judge court (juzgado; órgano unipersonal). But, once again, this distinction is not likely to be required in translation, and the term can usually be rendered simply as “judge.”

And, obviously magistrado-juez and “magistrate judge” are (big fat) false friends! As noted in the previous entry linked above, magistrado is a higher category of Spanish judge, while in England and Wales “magistrates” (also known as “justices of the peace”) are generally lay judges with no formal legal training. Likewise, in the United States federal system, there are “magistrate judges” who oversee civil and criminal pretrial matters and may conduct civil or criminal trials of misdemeanors (faltas; delitos leves), quite the opposite of the serious felonies investigated by Spanish magistrados-juez.

False Friends in ES-EN Legal Translation: is elevar really “elevate”??

rebeccajowers False Friends

False Friends Fridays new

In legal usage elevar has several different meanings, none of which is the literal “to elevate.” The most common translation of elevar in legal (and other) contexts is simply “to raise” (being synonymous with subir): El Ministerio del Interior está estudiando elevar la edad para conducir ciclomotores (“The Interior Ministry is studying the possibility of raising the age for driving motorbikes.”); El BCE confirma que volverá a elevar los tipos… (“The ECB confirms that it will once again raise interest rates…”).

Elevar has the additional meaning of “to submit a petition or proposal” (elevar una petición o propuesta). Thus, for example, elevación de las cuentas anuales para su aprobación por la Junta General de Accionistas refers to “submitting the annual accounts for approval at the annual shareholders meeting.”

In other respects, in Spanish felony proceedings (procedimiento penal ordinario) elevar a definitivas has a peculiar meaning, referring to the ratification of the prosecution’s initial accusation and the defense’s initial defense (collectively called calificaciones provisionales). At the end of a criminal trial and after evidence has been examined, the attorneys for the prosecution and defense may then amend their initial pleadings in written closing arguments called conclusiones based on the events that transpired at trial, or they may “ratify their initial accusatory and defensive pleadings” (elevar a definitivas las calificaciones de fiscal y defensa), which are then known as calificaciones definitivas.

Special mention should perhaps also be made of the omnipresent expression elevar a público that is sometimes mistranslated simply as “to make public” (which would be more appropriately rendered as publicar or hacer público). Elevar a público is indeed much more than merely publicizing an act or event, being an ellipsis for elevar a público un documento privado (meaning “to notarize,” “to record in a notarial instrument” or “to formalize in a notarial document”). In that regard, elevación a público refers to the procedure of appearing before a (civil law) notary to execute a private document, contract, etc. so that it may be recorded in a notarial instrument (escritura pública) to be preserved in his or her notarial records (protocolo). Thus, for example, elevar a público el nombramiento del administrador does not denote “making the director’s appointment public” (as the expression has sometimes been rendered),but rather “recording the director’s appointment in a notarial instrument.”

Confusing Terms in Spanish-English Legal Translation: “national” isn’t nacionalista

rebeccajowers Confusing Terms

Confusing Terms2

When recently reviewing a judgment* of the European Court of Human Rights, I realized that the Ministry of Justice’s Spanish version of that document confuses “national” with nacionalista. In English, when identifying a person’s country of origin, “national” means “citizen of:” “Paco Pérez, a Spanish national” = Paco Pérez, de nacionalidad española (or) Paco Pérez, ciudadano español, etc. In the judgment in question, the applicants were identified as “Hungarian nationals,” but appeared in the Spanish translation as nacionalistas húngaros (“Hungarian nationalists”). Perhaps this was some sort of Freudian slip, given the presence of nationalist political parties in the Basque Country, Catalonia, and elsewhere in Spain (whether the term nacionalista actually appears in the party’s name or not).

In other respects and as noted above, in Spanish contracts the ever-present de nacionalidad española is indeed used to indicate that a party to the agreement is “a Spanish national.” But the meaning may be slightly different when the parties are corporate entities rather than individuals. Empresa X, de nacionalidad española is obviously not “Company X, a Spanish national,” but rather “Company X, a Spanish corporation” or perhaps, adopting the expression often found in Anglo-American contracts, “a company incorporated under the laws of Spain.”

*Karácsony and others v. Hungary

 

Incoterms in Spanish and English: 2020 Update

rebeccajowers Capsule vocabularies

Incoterms-graphic-768x512

Way back in December 2017, I published an entry on the (then in force) 2010 “Incoterms (in Spanish and English) and what they mean.” , with a detailed bilingual chart describing each one. In this post I’m reviewing the information provided at that time for the many new readers of this blog who may have missed it, including the new DPU (formerly DAT) term in the amended 2020 Incoterms. A graphic showing the updated terms is available in this Incoterms 2020-responsibility chart, courtesy of Air and Surface Logistics.

International Commercial Terms (“Incoterms”) are eleven internationally-acknowledged standard trade terms created by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)* to be used in sales contracts. They specify:

1) who (whether the seller or buyer) will be responsible for transportation costs, including insurance, taxes and duties

2) where the goods are to be picked up and delivered, and

3) who is responsible for the goods at each step of the transportation process and, particularly, when risk of damage to or loss of the goods passes from seller to buyer.

Below are the standard Incoterms in English and Spanish with a brief schematic explanation of each:

A) Incoterms for multimodal transportation:

EXW Ex Works (named place)–EXW En fábrica (lugar convenido)

Seller places the goods at the disposal of the buyer at the seller’s premises or at another named place (factory, warehouse, etc.). The seller does not need to load the goods on any vehicle, nor clear the goods for export, if applicable. Buyer is responsible for all subsequent risks, transportation costs, taxes and duties from that point forward.

FCA Free Carrier (named place)–FCA Libre transportista (lugar convenido)

Seller delivers the goods to the buyer’s carrier at a designated place. At this point risk passes to buyer, who is then responsible for transportation to the final destination of delivery.

CPT Carriage paid to (named place of destination)–CPT Transporte pagado hasta (lugar de destino convenido)

Seller delivers the goods to a carrier designated by the seller at an agreed place. Seller contracts for and bears the cost of delivering the goods to the named place of destination.

CIP Carriage and Insurance Paid to (named place of destination)–CIP Transporte y seguros pagados hasta (lugar de destino convenido)

Seller delivers the goods to a carrier designated by the seller at an agreed place. Seller not only contracts for and bears the cost of delivering the goods to the named place of destination, but must likewise take out minimum insurance coverage against the buyer’s risk of loss or damage to the goods during transportation. Buyer may choose to contract additional insurance coverage.

DAP Delivered at Place (named place of destination)–DAP Entregado en un punto (lugar de destino convenido)

Seller is deemed to have delivered the goods when the goods are placed at the disposal of the buyer on the arriving carrier ready for unloading at the named place of destination. Seller bears all risks involved in bringing the goods to the designated place.

DAU (formerly: DAT) Delivered at Place Unloaded (named place of destination)–DAU Entregado y descargado (lugar de destino destino convenido)

Seller is deemed to have delivered the goods when, once unloaded from the arriving means of transport, they are placed at the disposal of the buyer at a named terminal at the designated port or place of destination. Seller bears all risks involved in bringing the goods to and unloading them at the terminal at the port or place of destination.

DDP Delivered Duty Paid (named place of destination)–DDP Entregado, derechos pagados (lugar de destino convenido

B) Incoterms specifically for sea and inland waterway transport

FAS Free Alongside Ship (named loading port)–FAS Franco/Libre al costado del buque (puerto de carga convenido)

Seller is deemed to have delivered the goods when they are placed alongside the vessel (e.g., on a quay or a barge) designated by the buyer at the named port of shipment. Risk of loss of or damage to the goods passes to buyer when the goods are alongside the ship, and the buyer bears all costs from that moment onwards.

FOB Free on Board (named loading port)–FOB Franco/Libre a bordo (puerto de carga convenido)

Seller delivers the goods on board the vessel designated by the buyer at the named port of shipment. Risk of loss of or damage to the goods passes to buyer when the goods are on board the vessel, and the buyer bears all costs from that moment onwards.

CFR Cost and Freight (named port of destination)–CFR Coste y flete (puerto de destino convenido)

Seller delivers the goods on board the vessel and risk of loss of or damage to the goods passes to buyer once the goods are on board. Seller bears responsibility for contracting for and paying the costs and freight necessary to bring the goods to the named port of destination.

CIF Cost, Insurance and Freight (named port of destination)–CIF Coste, seguro y flete (puerto de destino convenido)

Seller delivers the goods on board the vessel and risk of loss of or damage to the goods passes to buyer once the goods are on board. Seller not only bears responsibility for contracting for and paying the costs and freight necessary to bring the goods to the named port of destination, but must likewise take out minimum insurance coverage against the buyer’s risk of loss of or damage to the goods during carriage. Buyer may choose to contract additional insurance coverage.

Terminology of Criminal Procedure: The Top 40 Verbs You May Need to Know

rebeccajowers Legal English for Spanish-speakers

legal english crimpro terms

One of the “problems” with bilingual legal dictionaries is that most contain mainly single-word noun entries. But my students and lawyer clients need lots of verbs to be able to explain Spanish law to their English-speaking clients. This week we are winding up a 18-hour unit on criminal procedure, and I’m sharing below a list of the “Top 40 Crimpro Verbs (and their Prepositions!)” that we’ve used in class.

to commit a crime

to suspect (someone) OF committing a crime

to be suspected OF committing a crime

to be UNDER investigation

to arrest (someone)

to take (someone) INTO custody

to be UNDER arrest

to be arrested FOR (here specific offense)

to be arrested ON a charge OF (here specific offense)

to be brought BEFORE the judge/the court

to appear IN court

to file/bring charges AGAINST the suspect

to charge (someone) WITH a crime

to be charged WITH two counts OF (here specific offense)

to accuse (someone) OF (here specific offense)

to be accused OF (here specific offense)

to enter a plea OF guilty or not guilty

to plead guilty/not guilty TO the charges

to confess TO (here specific offense)

to set/fix bail

to post bail

to release (someone) ON bail

to prosecute (someone) FOR (here specific offense)

to try (someone) FOR (here specific offense)

to be prosecuted/tried FOR (here specific offense)

to testify AGAINST (someone) AT trial

to defend (someone) AGAINST the charges

to be prevented FROM introducing illegally-obtained evidence AT trial

to pass verdict ON the accused

to acquit/to find (someone) not guilty OF (here specific offense)

to be acquitted/to be found not guilty

to convict/to find (someone) guilty OF (here specific offense)

to be convicted/to be found guilty

to find (someone) guilty AS charged

to be sentenced TO ten years in prison FOR (here specific offense)

to serve a ten-year sentence

to be released FROM incarceration

to be granted parole

to be ON parole

to violate parole

False Friends: el magistrado más moderno may not be modern at all!

rebeccajowers False Friends

Oh, no! False Friends

When describing the Spanish judiciary, there is a peculiar context in which the adjective moderno cannot be rendered as “modern,” and failure to recognize that fact could prove a source of serious translation mistakes. For example, the expression magistrado más moderno de la Sala Primera del Tribunal Supremo does not refer to the most modern or fashionable of the judges, but rather to the “judge with the least seniority in the Civil Division of the Supreme Court.”

“Seniority” is of course antigüedad, and magistrado más moderno denotes the judge with the least seniority (but not necessarily the youngest) on a given court or among a panel of judges, while magistrado más antiguo describes the judge with the most seniority (but not necessarily the oldest).

In Spain judges’ seniority is determined each year in the Escalafón de la Carrera Judicial (Career Judges Seniority Ranking), prepared by the Comisión Permanente del Consejo General del Poder Judicial (Standing Committee of the General Council of the Judiciary). And being the más moderno is significant in many instances. As an example (there are many others), regarding deliberations and voting to reach a decision and render judgment, the Ley Orgánica del Poder Judicial provides that concluida la discusión de cada asunto, se procederá a la votación, que comenzará por el Juez o Magistrado más moderno y seguirá por orden de menor antigüedad, hasta el que presidiere (Art. 157).